How good can this finish get (neurotic detailers wanted)

Knave · 1st July 2007, 16:27

Finding beutiful photos of BMW's reflecting the owner, flagpole with patriotically waving flag, trees, neighbors houses, etc are easy to find. My car does reflects quite nicely too, but it still has a significant amount of spiderwebs and microscratches.

I took it to a detailer who ran a high speed machine over it and it looked incredible in the shade but again the sun exposed her flaws.

I would love to see pictures of your cars in the sun with the camera focused on the surface of the car. I'm researching how to improve the finish and would like to see some success stories. See my attached for example.

Thanks!

ard · 1st July 2007, 17:54

Simple.
Newly detailed blue beauty...the steps to perfection

Naked M5

"Running a high speed machine" over it is not the total solution. You need the machine, but you need someone running it with the dedication of achieving surface perfection. Simply stated, you must re-polish the surface of your paint- THEN use wax/polymer/zaino/whatever to protect it.

Waxing the microscratches will only cover them up for a while.

Good Luck

A

Knave · 1st July 2007, 18:11

Thanks - both of those posts will be helpful when it comes to process. The first one has some really excellent close ups and I think it is showing me what I want to see but I would still love the point blank sun reflection on surface shot like mine above.

If I was these guys I would have selected the photos that showed off my work best and filtered out any that still showed blemishes...I want someone to look for the remaining blemishes in one of these gorgeous cars and open the kimono a little.

Wash & wax is all I have ever done so now that I'm looking to go further I want to know what I can expect and know when I am "done".

Thanks again.

Laidback · 1st July 2007, 19:01

+1 on A...Prepping the car ( wash and clay ) is your first concern...in your case i would recommend using a paint cleaner after claying the car (gives you extra room for a much better result) Black car as they say is very hard to work on, all i can say is they only have be treated with care (not necessary hard ) and once you reach your goal and happy with it... maintenance is the key...I am always careful and anal when washing the car as this is the time that your paint is vulnerable to scratches ( not using the right products, cloth/towels and being to aggressive when washing causes more damage/ scratches on the paint )...you can either decide to use Carnauba or Sythetic waxes this will all be dependent on your preferences and proper use of this product; that will ultimately bring your car back to pristine condition...hope this helps....

Btw this is a classic swirl ( mostly evident on dark colored cars) and you just need some elbow grease/ PC and patience but would be easily taken care off...goodluck

This is Nstg8tR's S2000 that we worked on the last time...

Quote:

Originally Posted by ard

Simple.
Newly detailed blue beauty...the steps to perfection

Naked M5

"Running a high speed machine" over it is not the total solution. You need the machine, but you need someone running it with the dedication of achieving surface perfection. Simply stated, you must re-polish the surface of your paint- THEN use wax/polymer/zaino/whatever to protect it.

Waxing the microscratches will only cover them up for a while.

Good Luck

A

Knave · 1st July 2007, 19:10

I don't mind the elbow grease - my wife told me this morning that if I gave her as much attention as I give the car then her dinners would taste a lot better...I can think of better trades for more attention but you get the idea.

The problem is more one of lack of knowledge and experience. I'm a detailing newbie. I think I have the basics of washing and waxing now in terms of using the right products (no longer using dawn and an old t-shirt to wash and beach towel to dry...that has to be an improvement!).

I'm just ready for that next step and really trying to see how much better it can get...if those images from reference post #1 above are really representative then I can't freakin wait to get my beast there.

COMA · 2nd July 2007, 04:03

You really need a machine to get those defects out. They aren't bad, but certainly noticable. If you're a novice, I'd recommend the Porter Cable 7424 or 7336 (same machine different counterweight). This is a random orbit machine that won't create enough heat to burn your paint. Correction will take longer, but its a fool proof machine that works much faster than your hand. Detailing is very much trial and error until you find a process that works for YOU. When I bought my M5 a week ago, it had rotary holograms and swirls all over the car. I used the fine cut, followed by the machine glaze and finished with NXT - it came out very good, about 90% of the defects are gone which is good enough for me. And I'm fairly neurotic about my finishes. I've just realized that owning a black car comes with every piece of dust, every scratch or swirl showing up in the sunlight.

You'll be in great shape if you can whack 90% of the defects in the pic you posted.

A rotary is another option - incredibly effective, but you can burn through your clearcoat if you don't know what you're doing.

Lastly, you CANNOT avoid swirls on any car, and they are much more noticeable on dark cars. Even with proper washing and drying, you'll still get defects.

Knave · 2nd July 2007, 04:11

I figured that expecting perfection was unreasonable but as stated above I would like to know what is reasonable to expect.

I bit the bullet and decided to buy the GlossHaus kit which includes the PC 7336.

http://www.glosshaus.com/glosshausKit1.php

It's not cheap but it is convenient - I was fed up researching each of the different products lines and then trying to piece together a process from different posts and whatnot. I sent some questions to glosshaus and Dave Crawford was very good about answering my questions and digging up photos from his archives of examples very similar to my car, the paint color and condition. He seems to have a well defined process and it gives me someone to go to if I have any questions.

I intend to be very thorough in documenting the before and after as well as providing notes on my experience.

So until then...

Laidback · 2nd July 2007, 04:56

That's alot of $...if you were close by i would have helped you out

..well goodluck and keep us posted...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knave

I figured that expecting perfection was unreasonable but as stated above I would like to know what is reasonable to expect.

I bit the bullet and decided to buy the GlossHaus kit which includes the PC 7336.

http://www.glosshaus.com/glosshausKit1.php

It's not cheap but it is convenient - I was fed up researching each of the different products lines and then trying to piece together a process from different posts and whatnot. I sent some questions to glosshaus and Dave Crawford was very good about answering my questions and digging up photos from his archives of examples very similar to my car, the paint color and condition. He seems to have a well defined process and it gives me someone to go to if I have any questions.

I intend to be very thorough in documenting the before and after as well as providing notes on my experience.

So until then...

Knave · 2nd July 2007, 05:13

It is a bit of coin, but my time is limited these days...I justified it by dividing by 3 which is how many cars I have that need this

ard · 2nd July 2007, 07:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by Knave

I bit the bullet and decided to buy the GlossHaus kit which includes the PC 7336.

http://www.glosshaus.com/glosshausKit1.php

..

Wow. For $485 I'd have given you my cell number!

just kidding.

You will find that there are many, many ways to skin the cat- or de-swirl a finish. Many products. No 'one solution'. Mixing and matching works fine.

It's been said before, but your car MUST BE CLEAN before you touch it with the PC. Any stray grit will get picked up and leave it's marks as you work. Keep the PC pad off the ground, off the table, off the bench, off the... you get the idea.

Set up lights so you can see well. It is kinda wierd, but people look at paint and see reflections... YOU want to look at the SURFACE of the paint- it takes a bit to train your eye to focus on that surface.

Pick a small area to start. Like the trunk lid- F up and you can get it repainted. (Just kidding, but there is an element of truth...)

On a full clean and ready car, hit that trunk with whatever polish/swirl remover Ghaus is selling. Give it a pass, wipe it off, see what you've done. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Get comfortable with the machine and the products. Once you have it down it will be much easier.

Oh, maybe do the wife's car first.... just tell her with all the time you spend on the M, you wanted to do hers first... when the truth is you wanted a guinea pig!

A